Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6T-01164

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what steps it is taking to bring the strike action by teachers to an end.

Question reference: S6F-01802

Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 February 2023

To ask the First Minister, in light of reports of people being forced onto prepayment meters, what steps the Scottish Government is taking to support vulnerable people in Scotland with rising energy costs.

Question reference: S6F-01815

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 February 2023

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's position is on whether oil and gas companies are investing enough of their profits to support a just transition in Scotland.

Question reference: S6F-01795

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 February 2023

To ask the First Minister what assessment the Scottish Government has made of the potential impact on the hospitality and tourism sectors of a ban on advertising alcohol products.

Question reference: S6F-01792

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 February 2023

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-01793

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 February 2023

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-01796

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 February 2023

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to reports that 600 drinks producers are concerned about the impact on their businesses, and the survival of them, in relation to the Deposit Return Scheme.

Question reference: S6W-14100

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to reduce ScotRail's arrival and departure delays at (a) Ayr and (b) Girvan Station, in light of statistics showing the percentage of trains arriving on time in the period 11 December 2022 to 7 January 2023 was just 37.7% at Girvan and 67% at Ayr.

As the member is aware, ScotRail’s performance is measured using the industry standard Public Performance Measure (PPM) which combines reliability and punctuality into a single performance metric. To achieve PPM, a service must arrive/terminate at a station within 5 minutes of its booked arrival time.

PPM is a practical measurement of performance, which allows time for rail staff to assist passengers or hold trains for connections to be made when appropriate.

PPM figures at Ayr and Girvan in the latest reporting period (11 Dec 2022 – 7 Jan 2023) are 91.4% and 91.3% respectively, showing more than 9 out of 10 trains arriving at these stations met their performance target. Services at these stations showed better performance than the network as a whole.

Question reference: S6W-14073

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the effectiveness of Scottish Coast Guard Rescue Teams and related mental health support for their staff.

The Scottish Government has had no recent discussions with the UK Government on these issues; I have, however, recently met with the Maritime Coastguard Agency regarding all aspects of their operations in Scotland.

Coastguard operations are matters reserved to the UK Government and the responsibility of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency, reporting to the Secretary of State for Transport, are responsible for providing effective operations and the welfare of its workforce.

The Scottish Government expects the highest shipping safety and other regulatory standards around Scotland’s coasts and that coastguard staff welfare issues are afforded paramount importance in what is a sometimes hazardous line of employment.

Question reference: S6W-14428

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 27 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-09982 by Jenny Gilruth on 16 August 2022, how much funding is currently available in the current financial year to help purchase (a) new and (b) used electric vehicles through interest-free loans.

The Scottish Government's Used Electric Vehicle Loan provides interest free loans to help individuals and businesses make the transition to electric vehicles. Energy Saving Trust deliver this scheme on behalf of Scottish Minister, and publish loan statistics on their website, details of which can be found here: Grants and loans to help you travel greener - Energy Saving Trust .

As of 12 January, Energy Savings Trust have issued 624 loans to a value of £15,763,144 and have also offered an additional 398 loans worth £10,623,147. This represents a total commitment of £26,376,291 from a £30m budget for the 2022-23 financial year.

In line with our commitment to widening access to electric vehicles, the loan supports the purchase of used electric vehicles. Sectors such as Taxis and Private Hire may access the loan to purchase new vehicles, but no specific loan funding is set aside for new vehicles.